Kai-Wei Teng, coming off a series of abbreviated outings, delivered one of his best performances of the season in helping the Astros win their third straight series.
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Houston Astros shortstop Jeremy Peña (3) celebrates his double in the fifth inning against the Cleveland Guardians at Daikin Park on Sunday, June 21, 2026.
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Houston Astros center fielder Brice Matthews (0) can’t quite get to Houston Astros shortstop Jeremy Peña (3) hit in the fifth inning at Daikin Park on Sunday, June 21, 2026.
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Houston Astros first baseman Christian Walker (8) is tagged out by Cleveland Guardians catcher Patrick Bailey (16) after getting caught off third base at Daikin Park on Sunday, June 21, 2026.
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Houston Astros designated hitter Jose Altuve (27) walks back to the dugout after striking out in the fourth inning against the Cleveland Guardians at Daikin Park on Sunday, June 21, 2026.
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Houston Astros left fielder Yordan Alvarez (44) celebrates his run off of a single by Isaac Paredes (15) in the fourth inning making the score 2-0 against the Cleveland Guardians at Daikin Park on Sunday, June 21, 2026.
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Houston Astros first baseman Christian Walker (8) connects for a single in the fourth inning against the Cleveland Guardians at Daikin Park on Sunday, June 21, 2026.
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Houston Astros catcher Christian Vázquez (2) connects for a sacrifice bunt in the bottom of the third inning against Cleveland Guardians at Daikin Park on Sunday, June 21, 2026.
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Houston Astros pitcher Kai-Wei Teng (17) pitches in the second inning against the Cleveland Guardians at Daikin Park on Sunday, June 21, 2026.
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Houston Astros pitcher Kai-Wei Teng (17) pitches in the second inning against the Cleveland Guardians at Daikin Park on Sunday, June 21, 2026.
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Houston Astros shortstop Jeremy Peña (3) gets Cleveland Guardians right fielder Kahlil Watson (31) fly out in the second inning at Daikin Park on Sunday, June 21, 2026.
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Cleveland Guardians pitcher Slade Cecconi (44) pitches in the first inning against Houston Astros at Daikin Park on Sunday, June 21, 2026.
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Houston Astros first baseman Christian Walker (8) congratulates Yordan Alvarez (44) after his solo home run in the first inning against the Cleveland Guardians at Daikin Park on Sunday, June 21, 2026.
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at Daikin Park on Sunday, June 21, 2026.
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Houston Astros shortstop Jeremy Peña (3) nods to the Cleveland Guardians bench in the first inning at Daikin Park on Sunday, June 21, 2026.
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Houston Astros pitcher Kai-Wei Teng (17) pauses between batters in the first inning as the team takes on the Cleveland Guardians at Daikin Park on Sunday, June 21, 2026.
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Houston Astros pitcher Kai-Wei Teng (17) pauses between batters in the first inning as the team takes on the Cleveland Guardians at Daikin Park on Sunday, June 21, 2026.
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Houston Astros third baseman Isaac Paredes (15) can’t get Cleveland Guardians designated hitter Travis Bazzana (37) out at first during the first inning at Daikin Park on Sunday, June 21, 2026.
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Houston Astros first baseman Christian Walker (8) bat breaks as his hits into a fielders choice in the ffth inning against the Cleveland Guardians at Daikin Park on Sunday, June 21, 2026.
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Houston Astros second baseman Raynel Delgado (29), Houston Astros right fielder Cam Smith (11), Houston Astros shortstop Jeremy Peña (3) and Houston Astros center fielder Jake Meyers (6) celebrate the team’s 2-1 win over Cleveland Guardians at Daikin Park on Sunday, June 21, 2026.
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Houston Astros fans cheer after the team on the game against Cleveland Guardians at Daikin Park on Sunday, June 21, 2026. Houston Astros won the game 2-1 and won the series 2-1.
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Houston Astros pitcher Josh Hader (71) celebrates after getting the last out ninth inning against Cleveland Guardians at Daikin Park on Sunday, June 21, 2026. Houston Astros won the game 2-1 and won the series 2-1.
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Houston Astros pitcher Josh Hader (71) pitches in the ninth inning against the Cleveland Guardians at Daikin Park on Sunday, June 21, 2026. Houston Astros won the game 2-1 and won the series 2-1.
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Houston Astros pitcher Josh Hader (71) pitches in the ninth inning against the Cleveland Guardians at Daikin Park on Sunday, June 21, 2026. Houston Astros won the game 2-1 and won the series 2-1.
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Father’s Day plates during Cleveland Guardians and Houston Astros game at Daikin Park on Sunday, June 21, 2026. Houston Astros won the game 2-1 and won the series 2-1.
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Houston Astros pitcher Bryan King (74) pitches in the eigth inning against the Cleveland Guardians at Daikin Park on Sunday, June 21, 2026. Houston Astros won the game 2-1 and won the series 2-1.
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Houston Astros designated hitter Jose Altuve (27) connects but grounds out into a fielder’s choice in the bottom of the eighth inning against the Cleveland Guardians at Daikin Park on Sunday, June 21, 2026. Houston Astros won the game 2-1 and won the series 2-1.
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Stephen Matthews hugs his son, Houston Astros center fielder Brice Matthews (0), after throwing the ceremonial first pitch on Father’s Day at Daikin Park on Sunday, June 21, 2026.
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Stephen Matthews throws the ball to his son, Houston Astros center fielder Brice Matthews (0), for the ceremonial first pitch on Father’s Day at Daikin Park on Sunday, June 21, 2026.
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Stephen Matthews looks over to his son, Houston Astros center fielder Brice Matthews (0), before the ceremonial first pitch on Father’s Day at Daikin Park on Sunday, June 21, 2026.
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Some Houston Astros were joined by their dads for a ceremonial first pitch at Daikin Park on Sunday, June 21, 2026. Pitcher Spencer Arrighetti, from left, with his dad, Keith, pitcher Josh Hader with his dad, Tom, and Stephen Matthews with his son, outfielder Brice.
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After several starts that were cut short due to inconsistency and hard contact, Houston Astros right-hander Kai-Wei Teng was able to find his rhythm Sunday, delivering one of his strongest outings of the season.
Teng worked six innings and allowed one run as the Astros beat the Cleveland Guardians 2-1 at Daikin Park to win the three-game series.
It was the first time Teng pitched six innings since the Astros’ 3-0 win over the Cubs on May 23 in Chicago. Since then, he struggled to work deep into games, pitching 17 ⅓ innings over his next four starts.
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Sunday was a notable improvement for Teng, who allowed only four hits and one walk while striking out four. He threw 83 pitches (55 strikes) and lowered his ERA to 4.03.
Astros manager Joe Espada said catcher Christian Vázquez played a big role in Sunday’s success. Espada said Vazquez was able to recognize patterns and use Teng’s changeup and other pitches effectively.
“Both (Vazquez and Teng) work really well, they were really well-prepared,” Espada said. “You know that tandem between those two really got us through six innings.”
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Vázquez said Teng has a good slider and can sneak some fastballs into the zone, causing a lot of late swings and subsequent strikes.
“It was good today,” Vázquez said. “In the zone, it was good, Teng was throwing a lot of strikes, it was great.”
BATTERS
AVG
OBA
AB
R
H
2B
3B
HR
RBI
BB
SO
SB
CS
E
Team Totals
.243
.317
2652
356
645
130
5
103
341
261
647
24
12
29
Delgado
.364
.364
11
1
4
0
0
0
2
0
2
0
0
0
Wade
.333
.385
12
2
4
2
0
1
4
1
3
0
0
0
Alvarez
.322
.428
283
54
91
15
0
25
56
49
57
1
0
1
Peña
.283
.343
159
28
45
9
0
6
18
12
28
5
1
5
Correa
.279
.369
122
22
34
8
0
3
16
18
26
1
0
1
Trammell
.276
.337
76
9
21
5
1
0
7
6
31
1
0
1
Allen
.250
.290
64
12
16
2
0
1
5
3
14
1
0
0
Paredes
.246
.348
256
31
63
14
0
10
37
30
49
0
0
6
Diaz
.243
.265
111
8
27
6
0
2
15
4
19
0
1
0
Shewmake
.243
.260
74
8
18
3
0
3
8
2
13
0
0
1
Walker
.241
.313
291
43
70
14
1
18
52
27
69
0
0
0
Loperfido
.241
.344
79
11
19
7
0
0
7
12
22
1
1
1
Altuve
.235
.308
213
33
50
11
0
8
20
22
54
1
2
2
Harris
.226
.286
31
4
7
0
1
0
4
2
6
2
0
0
Smith
.219
.300
260
30
57
12
1
7
26
27
77
8
1
4
Vázquez
.219
.280
151
16
33
6
0
4
19
13
27
0
0
0
Meyers
.210
.269
119
13
25
5
0
3
11
9
27
1
2
0
Matthews
.206
.255
175
18
36
5
1
6
18
12
60
2
4
1
Dezenzo
.191
.255
47
5
9
4
0
1
2
4
19
0
0
0
Price
.167
.231
12
1
2
1
0
0
0
1
6
0
0
1
Cole
.157
.189
51
4
8
1
0
3
8
1
21
0
0
1
Johnson
.143
.294
14
1
2
0
0
0
0
2
3
0
0
0
Whitcomb
.130
.167
23
2
3
0
0
2
5
1
11
0
0
0
Salazar
.056
.227
18
0
1
0
0
0
1
3
3
0
0
0
___
PITCHERS
W
L
ERA
G
GS
SV
IP
H
R
ER
HR
BB
SO
Team Totals
37
42
4.84
79
79
22
697.1
631
397
375
101
346
681
VanWey
0
0
0.00
3
0
0
3
1
0
0
0
0
5
Santa
0
1
0.71
8
0
0
12.2
5
5
1
0
5
8
Brown
1
0
1.10
3
3
0
16.1
8
2
2
0
9
24
Hader
1
0
1.12
8
0
5
8
2
1
1
1
1
13
Okert
0
0
2.48
36
1
0
36.1
21
10
10
3
11
34
King
2
1
2.51
30
0
6
32.1
28
11
9
1
13
25
Arrighetti
7
3
3.13
12
12
0
69
51
26
24
6
32
68
Lambert
6
4
3.23
11
11
0
64
46
23
23
6
25
58
Blubaugh
3
2
3.78
30
0
0
47.2
33
21
20
5
27
44
Teng
4
6
4.03
22
9
0
60.1
51
30
27
9
27
62
De Los Santos
0
1
4.22
31
0
4
32
27
16
15
2
8
31
Pearson
1
0
4.22
9
0
1
10.2
11
5
5
1
4
10
Roa
0
1
5.19
7
0
0
8.2
10
5
5
1
7
6
Bolton
0
1
5.40
8
3
1
20
21
12
12
3
14
22
Burrows
3
8
5.79
15
14
0
79.1
95
54
51
18
30
66
Imai
4
3
6.15
10
10
0
41
35
28
28
6
24
48
Abreu
2
3
6.39
29
0
5
25.1
22
20
18
6
24
33
McCullers
2
3
6.86
8
8
0
39.1
38
32
30
7
22
43
Murray
0
0
7.43
8
0
0
13.1
19
11
11
1
7
8
Weiss
0
3
7.62
9
2
0
26
35
24
22
8
20
30
France
0
0
8.10
3
0
0
6.2
6
6
6
1
5
4
Sousa
0
0
8.10
5
0
0
3.1
3
3
3
0
5
4
Salazar
0
0
9.00
1
0
0
1
1
1
1
1
0
0
Alexander
1
1
9.33
4
2
0
18.1
21
19
19
4
8
14
Gordon
0
0
11.57
4
1
0
9.1
21
12
12
6
3
11
Javier
0
1
12.54
3
3
0
9.1
13
13
13
2
9
4
Muñoz
0
0
15.75
3
0
0
4
7
7
7
3
6
6
Teng has previously had trouble against left-handed batters, who had a .944 OPS against him this season. Sunday, he faced eight lefties and seemed to slide through them finding a comfortable rhythm.
Teng said he’s been more comfortable pitching against lefties recently.
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“I’m really getting used to facing a lot of lefties right now,” Teng said through an interpreter. “I’m getting more comfortable pitching against lefties, so I would say my mindset facing lefties and righties are the same right now.”
Teng then turned the game over to the left-handed trio of Steven Okert, Bryan King and Josh Hader.
The three relievers worked an inning apiece, allowed no hits and struck out six. Okert threw 21 pitches (13 strikes) while allowing one walk in the seventh. King got through the eighth on 11 pitches (seven strikes) and Hader needed just nine pitches, all but one a strike, to lock down his fifth save.
“Okert, King, Hader — I can’t say enough about how good those guys have been,” Espada said. “When we get our starter through five, six innings, and we can deploy those guys, and they’re as good as it gets.”
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Hader missed the first two months of the season with biceps tendinitis and was out for the last two months of last season with a left shoulder capsule strain. Espada said Hader’s strong return was exactly what he expected from Hader.
“He’s healthy, he’s one of the best,” Espada said.